Footwear retainer



Oct. 2, 1928. 1,686,175

D. Y. READ FOOTWEAR RETAINER Filed Aug. 11, 1s24 Patented Get. 2, 1928..

DAVID Y. READ, or WASHINGTON, nrsraro'r cryostat/131A.

FOOTWEAR RETAINER.

Application filed August 11, 1924. Serial No." 731,521.

This invention relates to foot-wear retainers of general applicability, but has its special field of usefulness as applied to useas an easily yieldable counter restorer. -The primary object of the present invention is to provide a retainer or counter restorer of such nature that when applied to an article of footwear it will permit the-user to insert his foot in the slipper or other device with a minimum of trouble and yet with assurance of the retention on the foot of the article;

A further object of the invention is to provide a bath slipper'with a rear counter together with means for holding the counter erect while permitting it to yield downward against a very slight force but having suf iicie'nt power to retain its 'shapeas soon the heel passes forward in the slipper.

In the drawings: f Figure 1 is a perspective of a bath slipper embodying my invention. V V i p Figure 2 is a half section in perspective showing a similar spring but illustrating a slightly different type of upper. V

- Figures 3 and l are perspectives of still further modifications of the spring to hold the counter collapsibly and yieldabl y erect.

In the drawings, I have shown the invention only in connection with a bath slipper,

but this is for the purpose of illustration merely, and the invention should not be considered as limited except as called for in the claims; the following specification being specific only in order that the invention may be the more thoroughly understood. As illustrated, the slipper consist-s of a leather or carpet sole to which is attached the usual upper 11 of ratine, toweling cloth or any other desired fabric and usually lined as at '14, and having a leather or similar edging The insole is of the customary paste-.

15. board covered with cloth 17.

The counter is preferably made of a soft, flexible material, asfor example, a fine quality of leather or soft cotton cloth having fabric loops on both sides. The counter may be attached to the sole directly, but is preferably secured between the insole and the sole, in which case the leather edging 15v may be continued rearward and bind the entire sole of the slipper.

Entirely hidden in the counter and in the edging at the rear of the sole is a jaw spring consisting of two U-shaped loops 26 and 27 converging together in elevation toward the front of the slipper where they are oined coils 28 which tend to separate the loops 26 and 27 and to make taut the'material of the counter 20. I prefer that the material forming this counter shall be so soft that it would collapse if it were not for the spring, and the spring itself should be of pressure with but little resistance.

The slipper Lshownin Figure 21s quite rears such strength that it will yield to downward similar to-the form shown iii- Figure 1,'the

principal difference being that the counter and forward section of the-upper are in" i one piece, as is quite customary iii-slippers, over-"shoes and so forth. The springin this modification is identical with thatpreviously described consisting of two similar loops joined by integral coils so that the counter is held erect collapsibly-and yieldabiy, so as topermit ready insertion of the foot and instant erection offthe counter after the counter is freed from downward pressure.

The spring 82 of Figure 3 is modified in that the coils 28 are omitted and the free ends-of the wire are left taut, asat 30, instead of belng bowed as at 27in Figures 1 and 2. The loop 26 is identical 'with tlie form in the preferred type, and the resilience necessary is acquired throughfth'e reverse bends at 33. V f

In Figure 4, I show the erector member one such spring would do the work properly,

I much prefer touse two such springs 40,

as shown.

In order to put on the slipper, it is merely necessary to'iinsert the toes :in the upper and push somewhat forward, then by bearing down on the counter or heel portion, the spring 25, 32, or {10, gives down freely, ofiering practically no resistance to the passage of the foot forwardly into the slippergbut as two pivoted loops, each substantially nonas soon as the heel passes over the rear ed e of the upper loop, the latter by virtu'eioft e resilence of the metal and the configuration" of the coils 28,.bend 33, or spring 4E0, restores the counter to erect position and secures the slipperfirmly on the foot.

' VVhatI claim is: I v p 1. An article of footwear in which the rear of the upper is downwardly yieldable characterized by the provision of means secured to the sole on both sides and located entirely outside of the central area of said rear portion for activel restoring the upper to original position w en relieved of downward pres sure.

2, In an article of footwear, a spring consisting of two joined loops, one following the contour of the rear of the sole and the other of the same shape following the contour of the rear ofthe top edge of the upper, and flexible material forming the upper secured to one of said loops and by it yie-ldably held taut.

3. In an article of footwear having a sole and a flexible upper, spring means secured to thetwo sides of the rear portion of the upper and to the sole, and yieldingly holding the rearportion of said upper taut while permittino' the top edge of the rear of the upper to bebrought substantially to the plane of the sole under downward pressure, and to restore it again when said downward pressure is removed.

4. An article of footwear having a sole and a flexible upper, having spring meanssecured to the sole at the junction of the sole and upper, and extending rearwardly. and

upwardlytoward the margin of the rear. of

the upper to assist inactively restoring the rear portion of the flexible upper to erect posit-ion when collapsed under pressure, said spring means being held under tension by the sole and upper whenthe article of footwear is not in use. l

5. An article of footwear having" a sole, a flexible, downwardly yieldable rear upper secured thereto, and means extending along the side edges of t-he'sole, and transversely along the elevated rear margin'of the upper for yieldingly holding taut the heel section of the upper, said means being a single piece of spring metal including two; parallel portions sloping rearwardly and upwardly from the sole toward the elevated rearmargin of a rear upper section or counter having its margin Joining the sole at a point between the heel and front portions of the sole,'a single piece of wire consisting of two substantially similar loops oined together at opposite sides of the sole and within the confines of the upper, with coils serving resiliently to separate thet-wo loops, one ofsaid loops following the contour of the rear portion of the sole and said other loop lying within'th'ehem of said counter.

7. In an article of footwear, a sole, an upper secured thereto, which upper can be temporarily deformed bya downward crushing force, andspring means anchored to thesole and ext-ending upwardly and rearwardly from the sole, said means yieldingly deform ing with the upper when the. upper is crushed and restoringthe upper to original position and shape when such-crushing force is removed. v I

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

DAVID Y. READ. 

